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evil

adj. · n.
US //ˈivəɫ// UK //ˈiːvəl// evil
  1. 1 morally bad (adj.)
    B1 Intermediate

    very cruel, bad, or morally wrong.

    profoundly immoral or malevolent in character or intent.

    Example

    In many old stories, the hero must defeat an evil king to save the land.

    Example

    The philosopher argued that no human is born inherently evil, but rather that circumstances and choices shape a person's moral compass.
  2. 2 harmful or unpleasant (adj.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    causing harm or having a very unpleasant quality, like a bad smell or mood.

    tending to cause harm, distress, or misfortune; can also describe sensory experiences that are intensely unpleasant.

    Example

    An evil smell was coming from the old bins behind the restaurant.

    Example

    The sailors watched the horizon with concern, noting the evil look of the gathering storm clouds.
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  1. 3 bad practice (adj.)
    C1 Advanced Slang Technical Computing

    something that is considered a bad idea or a poor way of doing things.

    describes a practice or method that is considered undesirable, inefficient, or likely to cause technical problems.

    Example

    Most programmers agree that using global variables like that is evil.

    Example

    While the shortcut works in the short term, senior developers consider hard-coding credentials to be fundamentally evil due to security risks.

    Teacher's tip

    In technical circles, 'evil' is often used hyperbolically to describe poor design choices rather than moral failings.
    • suboptimal
    • deprecated
    • best practice
  2. 4 wickedness (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    the force or quality of being very bad or cruel.

    the abstract concept of moral badness or the manifestation of malevolent forces.

    Example

    The book explores the struggle between good and evil in the modern world.

    Example

    The documentary examines the banality of evil, showing how ordinary people can participate in horrific systemic crimes.
  3. 5 a harmful thing (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    something that causes trouble, suffering, or damage.

    a specific source of harm, suffering, or misfortune; often used to describe social problems.

    Example

    High inflation is a social evil that affects the poorest families the most.

    Example

    The reformer dedicated his life to eradicating the evils of child labour and urban poverty.
Etymology 1

From Middle English yvel, evel, ivel, uvel, from Old English yfel, from Proto-West Germanic ubil, from Proto-Germanic ubilaz, from Proto-Indo-European h₂up(h₁)élos, a deverbal derivative of h₂wep(h₁)-, *h₂wop(h₁)- (“treat badly”). See -le for the supposed suffix. Alternatively from upélos (“evil”, literally “going over or beyond (acceptable limits)”), from Proto-Indo-European upo, *h₃ewp- (“down, up, over”). Cognates Cognate with Dutch euvel (“evil”), German übel (“bad, evil”), German Low German övel (“evil”), Luxembourgish iwwel (“queasy, nauseous; bad”), Gothic 𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌻𐍃 (ubils, “bad, evil”). Compare Old Irish fel (“bad, evil”), from Proto-Celtic *uɸelos, and Hittite 𒄷𒉿𒀊𒍣 (huwapp-ⁱ, “to mistreat, harass”), 𒄷𒉿𒀊𒉺𒀸 (huwappa-, “evil, badness”).

Etymology 2

From Middle English yvel, evel, ivel, uvel, from Old English yfele (“badly, evilly”), a derivative of the adjective yfel (“bad, evil”). Often reinterpreted as the noun in the later language (as in "to speak evil").

Idioms2 entries

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